Skipton Auction Mart’s final working sheep dog sale of 2022 saw 35 dogs go under the online hammer, with prices ranging from £2,100 up to a top call of £7,000.
Once again it was leading handler and triallist, Dewi Jenkins, of Tynygraig, Ceredigion, who headed the prices as he has done on multiple occasions in the past at both live and online sales at the North Yorkshire venue.
He led the way at £7,000 with his fully-broken 20-month-old bitch, Mwnt Pip, a daughter of his main stud dog Jock, the reigning 2022 International Supreme Champion, and with whom he also represented Wales at this year’s BBC One Man and His Dog final.
Out of a dam from young, up and coming fellow Welsh handler Teifion Morgan, of Pencefen, Mwnt, near Cardigan, Pip found a new home in Belgium with another renowned breeder and triallist, Jo De Meyst, from Zwevezele, between Antwerp and Gent.
Next best at £5,700 and heading the part-broken prices was another regular Skipton sale topper from Wales and one of the best-known names in the business, top breeder and triallist Kevin Evans, of Llwynfedwen, Brecon.
His fully home-bred January, 2021, black and white bitch, Kemi Floss, is by his European Nursery Champion and dual Welsh and International Brace Champion, Derwen Doug, out of Scalpsie Joy, herself a daughter of fellow Welsh handler Ross Games’ accomplished trials dog Roy.
Mated last November to Kevin’s Red Spot, a German import now proving a top stud dog, Floss went to County Tyrone in Northern Ireland and Castlederg’s Clare Harvry.
Kevin also made £3,950 with his May, 2021, fully broken red and white dog, Foxridge Copper, again by Red Spot, out of DW Edwards’ Tanhill Lady. The promising trials prospect also found a new home in Northern Ireland when claimed by L Buchanan, of Roscolban in Co. Fermanagh.
Further south from Eire and Glebe in Co. Kerry, Tom O’Sullivan made £5,100 with his four-year-old black and white bitch, Glebe Fort Ali, a well-bred daughter of his 2021 Supreme Champion and winner of this year’s One Man and His Dog final, North Hill Tess, herself a daughter of Derwen Doug.
By Kemi Ross Jnr, the third top price performer returned to southern Ireland with Gerard Harrington, of Eyeries, situated at the foot of the Slieve Miskish mountains on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork.
Heading the unbroken prices at £4,000 was yet another Welsh vendor, Sara Oliver, of Welshpool, with her black and white bitch, Cloddiau Jess, a four-month-old son of Clwyd Bob, another top performer from Dewi Jenkins and himself a son of his 2022 Supreme winner Jock.
The dam, Nantcydros Lottie, is a daughter to Aled Owen’s 2018 International Supreme Champion, Llangwn Cap. Jess found a new home in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, with Meltham’s Christopher Buckley.
Close behind at £3,900 and again from Wales was Brecon’s Tim Thewissen with his fully broken nine-month-old black and white bitch, Cefneithin Sky, by another Kevin Evans trialling star, Tanhill Glen, a dual European Nursery and Royal Welsh Champion, out of SC Jones’ Freebirch Mist.
Sky was claimed online by Swedish dog trainer Fanny Gott, of Kälkesta Gruvstugan, Fjugesta in Örebro County.
The top performing local vendor on price at £3,700 was Oakworth’s Carol Mellin with her fully home-bred March, 2020, black and white dog, Moor Lodge Jim, by her classy, well-utilised trials dog, Moor Lodge Ben, who has long been used to gather sheep on the Skipton trials field at live working sheep dog sales.
Out of her own Gyp, Jim, who has won nursery trials both this and last year, went to Lincolnshire with Market Rasen’s Jane Coulson.
From Northern Ireland, County Down’s L McKee, of Kilkeel, made £3,500 with his fully home-bred black and white bitch, Fly, who fell to a local West Craven buyer, Alan Butler in Barnoldswick.
Next at £3,200 was Leicestershire’s John Porter, of Astley, with a tri-coloured bitch, Meg, a January, 2020, daughter of D Henderson’s Burndale Brad. This, too, went to local Red Rose purchasers WH&JW Hartley in Colne.
Back with the Irish vendors, Neil Hirrell, of Cloontagh in Co Donegal, achieved £2,900 with his part-broken July, 2021, black and white bitch, Sal, by fellow Irishman Pat Byrne’s Moss, out of his own Kim, which became a second Jo De Meyst acquisition.
Again from Wales and catching the eye in the unbroken section with a £2,100 price tag was Jess, an 11-week-old red and white bitch pup from West Glamorgan’s Lyn Howells, by his own red and white Boss, which also went to Sweden and Stockholm’s Denise Robrandt,
